Sharps boxes or medical-caches?

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Now_To_Morrow
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Sharps boxes or medical-caches?

Post by Now_To_Morrow » 27 August 15 11:20 am

Hi all.

I've found a few little black sharps disposal boxes near geocache locations, a couple full of used needles, and a couple with some used and unused needles and insulin and saline in them.

Firstly, does anyone know about this kind of thing - is it for medical purposes, and if yes, what for? Do you think a mountain bike rider may have them there as an emergency kit? Or is it more for "recreational" use?

Secondly, if the container is full of used needles how do you dispose of them safely and appropriately?

Thirdly, how should one approach the owner of one of these to inform them of the nearby geocache if the CO doesn't appear to be moving their cache after being informed about the nearby medical-cache (assuming it is medical not recreational) hazard?

Goldenwattle
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Re: Sharps boxes or medical-caches?

Post by Goldenwattle » 27 August 15 3:37 pm

If it's insulin, I'd guess someone has accidentally lost it. It's meant to be kept cool, so it's likely no good now.

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Richary
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Re: Sharps boxes or medical-caches?

Post by Richary » 27 August 15 10:05 pm

The safest bet would be to contact the local council, they have facilities for disposing of sharps containers and will come and collect them. At a recent Geocaching NSW CITO we totally filled a large yellow sharps container with found needles, after instructions to the people to bring the container to the needle rather than the other way around, and use the grabber to pick it up. Though in that case I dropped the containers they had given us back to them with their grabber and a couple of other things we had been loaned for the event. That was Sydney City Council for the record. So if you let them know there is a problem in the area, they can then come and dispose of them correctly.

If it is someone's medical stash (which I doubt) they should be labelling it accordingly if they don't want it removed, but given the danger of used needles it shouldn't be there anyway. I assume the insulin and saline is labelled as such and you aren't just guessing? And I can't imagine the amount of saline in a small container would be of any use in case of emergency unless you are washing your eyes.

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Re: Sharps boxes or medical-caches? MTB?

Post by Now_To_Morrow » 27 August 15 10:50 pm

I'm not sure how to upload a photo and I'm not sure if uploading it privately to flickr will work, but I took a photo of one of the insulin ones and put it up at the below link. Let me know if it works or not.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/93043164@ ... posted-ff/

Yes, the unopened needles are labeled insulin and the little vials saline. The 2 with unused stuff in them were hidden ...like geocaches. Hence finding them while geocaching. One was at a mountain bike park, the other at a forest often trailbiked and perhaps mountain biked also.

The dirty ones were at other locations just out in the open and one jammed in a tree crevice. Thanks for the advice on cleaning them and loose needles up.

I'm not well educated on medical conditions, so am still intrigued as to what the insulin ones would be used for. I thought insulin was for diabetics and didn't think they needed the insulin boost unless they were not looking after their diet or something, but I don't actually know anything about these things as I've been blessed not to have to.

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